BARCA TRAIN AT ST GEORGE'S PARK

Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi were the obvious absentees as Barcelona trained at England's football headquarters on Monday evening after arriving for a one-week camp in the midlands.

Suarez is banned from all football activity for four months following his World Cup biting shame while Messi and fellow superstar Neymar remain on extended leave after Argentina and Brazil's involvement in the latter stages.

New faces Claudio Bravo, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Jeremy Mathieu and Ivan Rakitic were all present at St George's Park, the Football Association's training base near Burton on Trent.

The new faces were joined by midfield stars Xavi and Andres Iniesta with the likes of Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, and Pedro also put through their paces under the watchful eye of new coach Luis Enrique.

Defenders Dani Alves and Javier Mascherano are also on leave after their exploits in Brazil. But perhaps more noticeable were the absences of club stalwarts Carles Puyol and Victor Valdes, with the captain having retired this summer and the latter opting for pastures new.

Former Everton loanee Gerard Deulofeu was also amongst the first-team squad with Martin Montoya, Marc Bartra, Sergi Roberto and Ibrahim Afellay all involved.

Defender Adriano missed out with a health issue while former Arsenal midfielder Alex Song arrived in England before leaving immediately for personal reasons.

The four-time European champions will stay in the midlands until Saturday.